TWO SPACEWALKS IN TWO WEEKS? CHECK.

WELCOME TO SPACE TO GROUND, I’M DAN HUOT. TWO NASA ASTRONAUTS JUST COMPLETED THEIR SECOND SPACEWALK IN AS MANY WEEKS.

JEFF WILLIAMS AND KATE RUBINS SPENT 6 HOURS AND 48 MINUTES WORKING IN THE VACUUM OF SPACE ON THURSDAY,
COMPLETING ALL OF THEIR PRIMARY TASKS AND SEVERAL GET-AHEADS. THE PAIR RETRACTED A BACKUP THERMAL CONTROL RADIATOR
THAT HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN DEPLOYED AS PART OF AN EFFORT TO ISOLATE AN AMMONIA COOLANT LEAK. THEY ALSO INSTALLED TWO HIGH-DEFINITION CAMERAS
THAT WILL PROVIDE NEW, STRIKING VIEWS OF THE EARTH AND ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE STATION, INCLUDING THE COMINGS AND
GOINGS OF VISITING SPACECRAFT.

HISTORY WAS MADE THIS PAST WEEKEND WHEN DNA WAS SUCCESSFULLY SEQUENCED IN SPACE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER.

NASA ASTRONAUT KATE RUBINS DID A SUCCESSFUL TEST OF THE BIOMOLECULE SEQUENCER DEVICE, DEMONSTRATING THAT SEQUENCING DNA IS POSSIBLE
IN AN ORBITING SPACECRAFT. WITH A WAY TO SEQUENCE DNA IN SPACE, ASTRONAUTS COULD DIAGNOSE AN ILLNESS, OR IDENTIFY MICROBES GROWING
IN THE STATION AND DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT THEY REPRESENT A HEALTH THREAT. LOOKING FURTHER,
A SPACE-BASED DNA SEQUENCER COULD BE AN IMPORTANT TOOL TO HELP PROTECT ASTRONAUT HEALTH DURING LONG DURATION MISSIONS ON THE JOURNEY TO MARS,
AND FUTURE EXPLORERS COULD ALSO POTENTIALLY USE THE TECHNOLOGY TO IDENTIFY DNA-BASED LIFE FORMS BEYOND EARTH.

THIS WEEK, THE STATION HAD A BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF NOT ONE, NOT TWO BUT THREE HURRICANES.

CAMERAS OUTSIDE THE STATION CAPTURED VIEWS OF THREE POWERFUL TROPICAL WEATHER SYSTEMS FROM OVER 250 MILES ABOVE ON TUESDAY.
FIRST, IT PASSED OVER THE PACIFIC WHERE HURRICANE LESTER WAS PACKING WINDS OF 125 MILES AN HOUR,
AND RIGHT BEHIND IT WAS HURRICANE MADELINE WITH WINDS IN EXCESS OF 130 MILES AN HOUR. AND THEN A FEW HOURS LATER,
THE STATION FLEW OVER HURRICANE GASTON IN THE OPEN ATLANTIC, STILL CHURNING ALONG WITH WINDS OVER 100 MILES AN HOUR.

KEEP SENDING US YOUR QUESTIONS USING THE HASHTAG SPACE-TO-GROUND. WE’LL SEE YOU NEXT WEEK.